Grant will support on-line curriculum to help youthful offenders, The Mountaineer (11.07.2011)
The Evergreen Foundation has awarded a $30,000 grant to Shared Vision Consulting, LLC to create an on-line curriculum to teach and support the Juvenile Justice Treatment Continuum (JJTC) model of service used by Meridian Behavioral Health Services.
The model is used in the seven western counties of North Carolina and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians land. The JJTC model depends upon a multi-agency commitment to provide integrated behavioral health, substance abuse, and restorative justice services to youth who become involved in the judicial system.
The model requires staff from at least three agencies (juvenile justice, behavioral health and community service) to share in providing services to these youth and regularly review consumer progress and staff performance.
The model is very successful and has resulted in successful completion of services for an average of 70 percent of youth coming into the JJTC process since it’s inception; the seven counties in the 30th judicial district have an overall current recidivism rate for JJTC involved youth of only 15 percent (2010-11).
Services are provided within existing resources from Medicaid, state and private insurance dollars.
The on-line curriculum will allow for continuous training and certification in the JJTC model for staff from participating agencies and others who have an interest in JJTC.
Chuck Mallonee, Chief Court Counselor for the 30th District Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention office, said he is grateful for Evergreen’s support of this project.
“The JJTC Platform has assisted us in providing alternatives to youth who become involved with the courts; the multi-agency approach and shared review of outcomes has created strong partnerships between the agencies. An on-line curriculum to ensure that our partners can maintain this platform and continue to work with this approach to service delivery is very welcome and essential to JJTC’s continued success.
Headed by two of the architects of the model, Shared Vision Consulting, LLC has been contracted to create the on-line curriculum for the JJTC involved agencies. Evergreen Foundation is a non-profit foundation serving the seven westernmost counties.
For more information about Shared Vision Consulting, contact Patricia Long at 246-0153. To reach the Evergreen Foundation, contact Tom McDevitt at 828-456-8005.